NMSU students spend summer working for Google, MIT

Three New Mexico State University students are back in Las Cruces after a summer filled with great learning opportunities at their summer internships.

New Mexico State University honors student Nicole Price spent her summer interning for Google at Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Alyssa Peters)
New Mexico State University honors student Elena Davidson interned at Google's global headquarters in Mountain View, California, over the summer. (Photo by John Shamoon)
New Mexico State University honors student Alvin Harvey spent his summer researching at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (Photo by David Clark Spacesuit Company)

Two students, Nicole Price and Elena Davidson, interned for Google, and Alvin Harvey was at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. All three students are in the Honors College at NMSU.

“When students engage in internships it greatly enhances their learning experiences, and it provides them with the networks that they will need to succeed when they complete their studies at NMSU,” said Miriam Chaiken, dean of the William Conroy Honors College.

Price worked for Google in Ann Arbor, Michigan, as an information technology intern. She maintained, monitored and fixed Google’s corporate computer systems and networks. She also designed multiple break-and-fix networking labs to help employees learn about networking and to enhance their troubleshooting skills. She also had the opportunity to work in New York City for a week.

“One of the most enjoyable parts of this summer was having the opportunity to talk to so many brilliant people and to listen to their remarkable ideas,” Price said. “The experience has further prepared me for a technical career upon graduation.”

Her internship led to an interview for a full-time position with Google. Price will graduate in December with a bachelor’s degree in information engineering technology and a minor in security technology.

Davidson was an engineering practicum intern at Google’s global headquarters in Mountain View, California. During her internship, she worked on an open-source technical interview preparation tool for college students.

“Interning at Google was an incredible experience and I am so grateful I had this opportunity,” Davidson said. “Being an intern at Google definitely gave me the knowledge and skills necessary to participate in more internships and, eventually, a career in the tech industry.”

She also had the opportunity to participate in GoogleServe volunteer days and go on a Google Intern boat cruise around San Francisco Bay.

Harvey spent his summer working at the M.I.T. Manned Vehicle Lab. He did research to contribute to the validation of computer simulated human-to-spacesuit interactions. He focused on the lower parts of spacesuits and gathered data from spacesuit and benchtop testing.

“Being a part of the M.I.T. summer research program exposed me not only to the world of graduate education, but the diversity of innovation and passion that engineers around the world share,” Harvey said. “Being able to work with passionate people first-hand on a project that mends together humans and engineering is a dream that I hope to make a reality.”

Harvey is majoring in mechanical engineering and minoring in mathematics. He will graduate in May 2018 and plans to apply for graduate school at M.I.T.

“As an institution, we have a goal of greatly expanding the number of students who have experiential learning opportunities, and the successes of Alvin, Elena and Nicole are a model for others to emulate,” Chaiken said.

These internships not only help the students with their future careers and education, but they also serve as the Honors Capstone for students who wish to graduate with University Honors.